Vampire Academy: Final Choice
by GigiHudson
Summary: Set after Spirit Bound, Rose has been cleared of all charges, but still does not know who saved her. After an attack by Strigoi on the Royal Court, where the gang are staying, they must go on the run. I suck at summaries, so please read. Thanks!
1. Broken Hearted

**Haiii :]**

**I just wanted to say, I am NOT Richelle Mead, although I wish I was, seeing as she has awesome hair, and of course owns Dimitri. And the whole VA series.  
Anyway I figured it was important to say that I am just a 14 year old girl from England with a love of snow and an unhealthy obsession with vampires, Dimitri, books, and fanfiction. **

**Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy it and check out some of my other stories:) **

**[As always, please please please read and review] 3**

Chapter 1: Headaches and Heartbreaks 

My heart felt like it was about to break, and still he didn't stop.  
"-And the worst part is Rose, is that you just don't see it. I don't love you anymore. Whatever fantasies or delusions you harbour are just that. They aren't real. You need to understand that whatever I may have felt for you in the past has faded, my...recent past has eclipsed all that."  
"Look me in the eyes Dimirti, and tell me that you don't love me. Because I know you can't do that, you still love me." I knew that I was pleading but I couldn't bear the thought of him leaving me. Of never seeing him laugh like he used to, of never seeing him smile like he did whenever we kissed. I couldn't accept that I would never have access to that side of him ever again.  
He turned to me.

"I don't love you."

He stood there, looking into my eyes as he said it. And that, beyond anything else made me believe him. Because although he could hide his expressions from me, I could always see his true emotions in his eyes. And there was no love there, not anymore.  
My already bruised heart couldn't take it, I felt like I was about to cry. But I wouldn't, couldn't, cry in front of him. So with one last look at him I turned away. I had only walked a few hundred yards when I realised someone was watching me.  
The figure in the trees has light brown hair, artfully hanging in his face, light green eyes and pale skin.  
"Shit."  
Adrian had just seen everything, and from the way he was looking at me, he had heard it all too.

"Adrian wait!" Shit shit shit, this was really bad, I had no idea how I was going to get away with this. Crap, I probably wouldn't. Arrghh! Screaming internally probably wouldn't help the situation but it would make me feel a whole lot better.

He ran off with a lot more speed than I thought he would have seeing as he wasn't exactly Mr Athletic, more Mr Stoner. I sighed and began to chase after him, but then the rain began, causing my already tearful eyes to be pretty damn useless. I carried on though, until we reached the housing section where I lost him. "Crap," I muttered under my breath. "Crap, crap crap."

I gave up on Adrian and retreated back to my room where I took a long shower and climbed into bed. I was too full of thoughts and mixed emotion to really let it all sink in. That is until about 2pm, (the middle of the night for us) when I suddenly woke up and began to cry uncontroably. It had jut hit me. Dimitri truly did not love me anymore. He was not Strigoi but any love he felt for me had gone.

I screamed, ripping at the sheets with my hands as tears flowed down my cheeks.  
"Dimitri! Dimitri! Dimitri…..Dimitri…." I repeated his name again and again, shouting, screaming at first until my voice had left me and I was just mouthing his name, over and over until consciousness left me and I fell back to sleep, still crying for the love I had lost.


	2. Cold Hearts and Cold Shoulders

**Chapter 2 ****Cold Hearts and Cold Shoulders **

I awoke with a killer headache. Great. That would really help me with what I was about to do.

I dressed in my formal guardian wear, hoping it would make me feel better, but sadly it didn't and I STILL had a pounding headache. Oh well, if I didn't do this then I knew I'd regret it. However much I might whine about Adrian, I really had come to care for him and I would lose him if I didn't talk to him as soon as possible. Not that 12 hours later could really be considered soon in any way, but hey, at least I was trying.

"Ouch." My headache, apparently decided I was doing too much thinking, had decided to reward me with a few painful pangs. Ok, that was it, I was taking some HeadEx.

10 minutes later, headache still alive and well, I was making my way over to Adrian's. I didn't really know what I would say in the way of explanations, but I owed him something. After all, we had been going out on and off now for nearly 2 years.

And not only that, but he had helped me travel to Russia and I still hadn't forgotten that, or what it had cost him, both physically and mentally. He had also been patient with me throughout all of my mixed signals. And for that, he really did deserve a medal, let alone an explanation.

"Rose Hathaway giving an apology. I'll give him a heart attack," I muttered under my breath

I allowed myself a small smile at that and then picked up the pace.

I knocked at the door feeling slightly nervous. What if he didn't answer?

"Come on Adrian," I muttered.

He answered after about 7 more knocks. And a threat of breaking down the door.

"What-." He broke of when he saw me. Shit, he was not happy.

"You." His voice was cold, far colder than I had ever thought him capable of. He really did have hidden depths, I couldn't have been more wrong about my first image of him as a playboy stoner. I winced, that wasn't fair. He was a lot smarter than any of us really gave him credit for.

"Yeah, me. Look I'm really….." My voice trailed off at Adrian's cold stare. The emerald green eyes that normally sparkled with joy and laughter were gone. Now his eyes were cold and unforgiving. Sorry just didn't really seem like a good enough explanation.

"Adrian I know that what you saw yesterday looked like I was…" was what? Asking Dimitri out? I almost laughed, I wasn't asking him out as much as begging for him to love me. Ouch. That must have been real painful for Adrian to watch, knowing as he did my feelings for Dimitri. I tried again,

"Ok, so it looked bad. But I do still care about you," I hesitated, trying to weight out my next sentence before I said it. In the end I just ploughed on in true Rose style.

"I even love you a bit. I think. And I know that you love me, whether you'll admit or not." Finally he spoke. Sadly, it wasn't to tell me that actually he loved me and all would be happiness and rainbows and shit. Nope, instead it was to get back at me for last night.

"Isn't that the exact speech you used on Belikov? Oh wait, there was no "I think" in there was there?" His voice was just as cold and bitter as the words he threw back at me. My head drooped down a little, this really wasn't going the way I had hoped it would. But then again, I reminded myself, what had I really expected him to do? He wasn't just going to roll over like a dog and automatically forgive me. I have going to have to work for it. But despite that conclusion, I was getting a little pissed with him.

"Ok fine, look I'm sorry that its difficult for me. I care about you, but you know how I feel about Dimitri. And you knew that this would happen. So why are you so surprised?" Ok so now I was more than a little pissed with him.

"I did know this! Why do you think I backed off so much? Of course I knew! Its written all over your face how much you love him."

"So why did you go out with me again then? Why give me another chance?"

"Because I thought you might love me too!" he screamed. I was stunned. I couldn't believe it. I'd been so blind, always lusting after Dimitri that I'd taken Adrian for granted, and what it must have cost him to side with me threw all of this. To watch me fawn over Dimitri and ignore him.

"I'm sorry," I said trying to show him that I really meant it.

He seemed to have had enough though, as he stepped further into the doorway looking sad and exhausted. I realised that he also looked like he had lost a lot of weight, his once snug jumper hung from his wrists like he was a skeleton. He also had big black marks under his eyes, and looked paler than most Moroi.

"It's over Rose. I can't….I just cant handle this anymore. You've made your choice." He sounded so sad, but still determined. That made me want to fight him even more, after all we had been through, he wouldn't just give up. He couldn't.

"Please! Please give me another chance….I don't…" I tried to convince him but couldn't find the words I needed.

"I don't mean to do this. Please, I still care about you!" I was begging now, but I didn't care, I couldn't let him shut the door. It would mean the end of me and him, and whatever my feeling for Dimitri I wasn't ready to lose Adrian.

He looked at me now, lifting his eyes from the floor.

"But I don't care about you." And then he slammed the door, leaving me standing there angry, upset and stunned.


	3. Best Friends Dont Always Understand

**I feel like I dont get that many reviews, so please, please review. Even if its only short, like 1 line, or whatever, just please review! **

**Thanks! It just gives me more incentive to carry on, and trust me I have a damn good story line planned;] **

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**Chapter 3 Best Friends Don't Always Understand **

I stood at Adrian's door for a few minutes before I turned around and walked across campus to the one place where I knew I would get support and comfort. Lissa.

It only took me 4 minutes to walk over to where she was staying. I knew that house better than my own dorm room back at the academy.

The weather was turning cold now, as it was around 12:30 and the wind was picking up.

Even with the cold though, I still couldn't help but marvel at the sky. It was clear and beautiful. The stars were like shining lights thrown over the dark blue night and I felt myself marvelling at how they could be so far away and yet still seem to be close enough to touch. I sighed. Their distant beauty reminded me of Adrian and Dimitri. The two completely different men who I had somehow found myself in love with. Sometimes life just sucked. I loved both of them, not only in different ways but for different things, Adrian for his patience and the way he always seemed to make me laugh, and Dimitri. Ahh Dimitri. I couldn't put into words how much I truly loved him. There was no way to describe the all consuming love and happiness I felt with him, even if it had always had an undercurrent of sadness.

I shook myself out of my reverie. "Come on Rose, don't join the pity party."

It looked, thankfully, like Lissa was in. Good. I was defiantly not in the mood to go chasing her all over the fucking court. The lights were on downstairs and I could hear her talking. Shit, I hope Christian wasn't visiting. Not only would that be pretty damn awkward but I wasn't in the mood to watch him and her have sex. I'd had enough of that back at the academy although I knew Lissa couldn't help but suck me into her mind when she was feeling an emotion pretty strongly. And that had been awkward enough for both of us. I suppressed a shudder and stepped forward to knock at her door.

"Lissa? Lissa? You there? I kinda have to talk to you." Great. Now she wasn't answering. I preyed she wasn't in the middle of a hot and heavy make out session with Christian as I let myself in with the key she had given to me a few weeks ago. Oh ew ew ew if she was. I quickly forced the image of them rolling around on the Persian rug that graced the living room floor firmly out of my head. Making my way down the hall way I could hear the sounds of music playing.

"Lissa seriously, turn that crap off and-I broke off as I entered the lounge.

She was sitting on the sofa with Mia, both had a glass of blood red liquid in their hands. _Blood_ red being the operative word.

"I…uhh…sorry…" Mia and I were no longer enemies, but I was kinda surprised to see her here. I froze not knowing what was going on. Thankfully Lissa came to my rescue.

"Rose? What are you doing here?" Her tone was surprised but warm. I couldn't help but feel relived that she wasn't angry with me for bursting in. I refused to think of it as breaking in as I had used a key.

"I just…..I wanted to…ermm…talk." Ok, so now I was here it seemed like a pretty lame excuse to just burst in, but I _was _really upset.

Mia laughed, taking my sudden appearance good naturedly.

"Hey Rose." She smiled.

"Hey Mia. Sorry for intruding…" I trailed off uncertainly.

"Its fine, I was just leaving." She smiled again, even more warmly this time. I did feel a bit guilty now as I had just burst in on a talk between them, and it was pretty obvious that she hadn't been about to leave. But obviously she could see how upset I was (damn, I had hoped it wasn't too obvious) and had decided to let me and Lissa talk it out.

I smiled at her now, trying to show I was understood what she was doing and was grateful.

"Ok, well bye now." She got up, taking her bag with her. I looked at Lissa and had to stifle a laugh. She looked so confused, it really was almost funny.

"I'll just see Mia out," she said, still looking bemused. Mia laughed at this,

"Lissa, the door is just down the hall, don't worry about it. And with that Mia waved and left.

I didn't say anything, suddenly becoming speechless.

"Well? What wrong?" She asked, sounding a little impatient.

I sighed and plunged into my story.

"- And then he just told me that he didn't care about me." I finished in a rush, having sped through it so that I wouldn't have to feel the pain that I did when he first said it to me. I looked at the fire for a few minutes longer before realising that Lissa hadn't said anything yet. I looked at her and frowned. She wasn't looking like she felt sorry for me, instead she looked annoyed and slightly sad. I couldn't work out why she wasn't hugging me and telling me that "it would all be ok", something that she normally did when I was upset. I always knew it wasn't true, but it made me feel slightly better.

"Lissa?" She looked even weirder now, like she was bracing herself to tell me something that would upset me. She had an actual face for that I swear. I guess that was a bad sign, but in true Rose fashion I didn't work it out until she said it.

"Ok look," she said in a rush, "I don't think its fair of you to treat Adrian that way. You tell him you want him and that you want to make it work, and then you just drop him the second you see Dimitri. I know you love him, and that's hard for you, but it doesn't give you the excuse to use Adrian like you do." My mouth dropped open. I couldn't believe she had just said that.

My voice became cold and emotionless as I replied, "I don't think you are in any position to lecture me Lissa. I know what happened with you and Christian back when I was in Russia. I know how you acted. I also know that however nice you seem, you wouldn't put your _best friend _before someone you barely knew. I BEGGED you to let me see Dimitri and you wouldn't even ask him. Not properly." My voice was getting louder now, I knew I had lost the emotionless pert and was close to shouting. "So don't you dare try to tell me how to act?" By the end of that sentence I was screaming at her, loud enough that I'm sure even Dimitri could hear and god knows he is always staying far away from me. She gasped as I finished my sentence, seeming shocked by my outburst. But unlike any normal person I couldn't just stop there and apologise, no. Instead I carried on.

"And it's always about you isn't it? Princess Lissa. You haven't got a clue of what its like to want something _so_ badly that you would, that you _did,_ anything for it. No, you get everything you could ever want don't you?" I regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth. I was angry, but that, that was something else. It wasn't just the words, but the way I said them, that hatred and bitterness that seemed to lace my every thought of Lissa recently. Maybe Deirdre was right, and that I did have some bitterness to Lissa for controlling my life…wait…..that wasn't right, I had never resented Lissa…..never thought she controlled my life….But thinking was hard as I seemed to have to be thinking through a haze….but before I could think of the reason, the explanation for my behaviour Lissa replied.

"I don't…..I can't….." She seemed shocked and hurt by what I said, and I could see the telltale signs that meant she was trying not to cry. Her face was pink and blotchy, both from her anger and her tears. Her voice was thick and seemed to choke her. Or maybe that was the words I had thrown at her in my anger and….despair.

"Rose….do you really think that?" Her face seemed so open so vulnerable. And all I wanted to do what stop her from crying, and protect her from everything I had done. But I still couldn't believe what she had said to me about Adrian, the words were fresh in mind as I replied.

"Yes. And you know what I really hate about you? You play the innocent but your not, not really." My voice and the words I had said were harsh, and as soon as I spoke them her face hardened, and her voice became just as cold as mine had been, only with a lot more venom.

"Well Rose, why don't we have a talk about you? You say I'm a bad friend, but you _left _me to go chasing down Dimitri in Russia. You run around like a slut after every boy who even winks at you. You're too full of yourself to even realise that you're single, because no one can handle your crazy shit! You're a bitch and a slut and that's why you have no one! That's why even your _mom _hates you." I couldn't believe she had done that. Her tone had stayed ice cold throughout her speech and now she was done she just glared at me.

"Fine." I said, trying to match her icy tones. "If that's what you think of me I'll leave."

"Good, I don't know why you came here in the first place."

And with that I stormed out, slamming the door as hard as possible.

Unlike with Adrian, I didn't sit around on her doorstep, I ran off into the night, tears steaming down my face now that I knew she wasn't there to see them. The look in her jade eyes, the ones that were so familiar to me it felt like looking in a mirror, were just as cold as her voice when I left. And it was then that I realised that all the people who had ever cared about me had given up and turned me away. I gasped and couldn't help the sobs that escaped my throat.

"Stupid, stupid…" I couldn't think of who I hated the most at that moment so I cried myself to sleep under a tree at the edge of campus. It seemed like I had no where else to go…I was alone now.


	4. I REALLY Hate Headaches

**Ok I just want to say I am realllly sorry that I haven't updated in what I suppose seems like forever. I have been super busy, and even though I had planned this story out, I got major writers block. Which sucked. But now I've had a break from it, I'm back and I'm going to update waaaay more. **

**Mkay. **

I woke up to the sounds of screaming. I didn't really understand that they were from terror until a few seconds later, when incidentally there were around 200 Strigoi running past me, beheading guardians and Moroi alike. I woke up then.

"Arrghhhhhh….." the guardian near me broke off suddenly. I spun around to look at her, my long hair catching in my eyelashes as I did so. Brushing it away impatiently I realised with a jolt _why _her screams had cut off. Her body lay on the floor just a few feet away from me. And about 10 feet to the left was her head.

I staggered away, retching until my stomach finally emptied itself. Wiping my mouth I looked up, at the chaos that was the royal court.

Just feet away Strigoi battled guardians and Moroi alike, ripping and tearing through them as though they were nothing more than paper figures.

I felt like I was going to throw up again as I surveyed the court.

Bodies were everywhere, Moroi, dhamphir and Strigoi alike. If I had thought the massacre at the Badica's house was bad, it was nothing compared to this. This was hell on earth. I felt like I was in shock as I watched hundreds of people either fighting or running for their lives from the Strigoi that had descended upon them. I couldn't believe it. I was literally in denial. All I could think was: _this isn't possible_. Just that one thought, again and again until suddenly a Strigoi loomed up in front of me and that thought changed to: _kill. _

I pulled my stake out and within seconds had plunged it into the bitch's heart. She was dead. Now it was onto the next one and the next one, there was barely a break between the masses of Strigoi that I was slaying. I felt and saw nothing, merely the ways in which to kill the Strigoi which attacked me. I was numb, cold and completely emotionless. But suddenly I caught sight of a Moroi girl, about my own age with pale blonde hair, and the last of my numbness shook away, replaced by anger. Fierce blinding anger, similar to what I had felt back at the academy attack when Christian and I had taken down the Strigoi near the elementary campus flooded through me, and I leapt forward with a scream.

I grabbed hold of the guy who held Lissa and flipped him around, kicking him in the face as I did so. As soon as my foot hit the ground though, he was lunging for me. I ducked out of the way and jabbed my stake at his back, but he wasn't stupid, and caught it, twisting my arm around as he brought me to the ground. It was then that I heard him say "Rose Hathaway…..well well well. This outta be fun."

He flipped me around to face him, breaking my arm in the process. I looked up into his face for a moment before I realised who he was.

Nathan.

"Oh shit." I whispered.


	5. Life Is A Bitch So Is Nathan

**Just wanted to say thank you so much to all of you amazing/awesome/incredible {you pick!} reviewers who have been so patient with me while I took my time updating. Because I suck.**

**Virtual cookies for you guys! :]**

I stared up into his red eyes and realised that this was it. I was going to die.

And then he plunged my stake into my heart.

'See how you like it bitch. You made a big mistake in Russia. You should have never tried to kill me. This is payback,' he whispered maliciously in my ear as he dropped my now lifeless body onto the ground. I felt the impact as I hit the hard earth, but not like I normally would have. It was like I was seeing, hearing and feeling everything as if covered by a blanket. It was…..disconcerting… I felt a faint sort of fire around where the stake had gone into me, but I couldn't feel the pain of it anymore. I couldn't even tell if the stake was sill there. I also felt like I was in a warm bath, but I knew I wasn't, unless maybe I had blacked out…? And then I realised: it wasn't a bath: I was covered in my own blood. So covered in fact, that I felt like I was drowning in it. I frantically tried to get up, but trying to move was like running through jell-o. It was impossible.

I started to truly panic then, as I couldn't see anything and I was drowning! I couldn't even move. The blood was killing me! But then I realised it wasn't that I couldn't see, it was that I couldn't open my eyes.

Oh yeah Rose, that helps your situation sooo much. Not.

But I told the sarcastic little voice inside my head to shut the fuck up, and decided to try and open my eyes.

I concentrated and managed to shove through the curtain that was currently cocooning me from the outside world.

Opening my eyes brought the painful awareness of reality straight back to me, and in an instant I could feel the blinding pain in my chest, the numbness of my limbs, and the cold silver of the stake inside my chest.

It felt like a cruel joke that after I had killed so many Strigoi like this, I was now going to die the exact same way.

It was very ironic.

I looked around as I tried to pull myself up from the ground, but it looked like nothing had changed.

Well, except for one thing.

Nathan wasn't next to me as I had assumed, instead he had a pale blonde Moroi girl in his arms, and it looked like he was in the process of ripping her throat out. So that explained why he hadn't checked to see if I was dead. For a minute I felt a small laugh come from between my lips, but then everything clicked together.

Lissa.

Nathan was killing Lissa.

I grabbed an abandoned stake from the ground and rushed at him. He was so involved with draining Lissa that he didn't even see me coming, and I staked him again and again, until he was barely recognisable. It was then that I noticed Lissa lying on the ground next to him. I crawled over to her as quickly as I could, but it was obvious from her posture that she was dead.

"No, no, no, not Liss….noooo, Liss come on…..no!"

I wiped her blood stained hair out of her face and gasped. It wasn't Lissa! I felt elated as I realised that Lissa was probably out with Christian at college, and therefore safe. But then I looked down at the Moroi girl that Nathan had just killed and felt despair that even though I didn't know her she was dead, and the last thing she would have seen was the blood red eyes of a Strigoi. That was no way to die.

I wish I could have done something, but as I had to remind myself, I'd tried.

I could feel the stake shifting in my flesh as I moved, and to fight the urge to throw up again. I was cold and numb now, which as my brain was telling me, was very very bad indeed. But I also knew I couldn't pull the stake out, no matter how much I wanted to, because then I would die from blood loss.

It didn't look very good for me.

I stumbled across the courtyard, struggling to walk around the bodies that were spread out everywhere. It was like a battlefield. I soon realised that I wouldn't make it all the way to the main entrance if I kept looking at all the dead Moroi, and dhamphirs. I was already feeling faint, and just staying upright was starting to get too much.

My vision was starting to cloud at the edges, another sign I knew wasn't good.

And yet I still tried to keep going. But now I was starting to sway, and the feeling in my legs was retreating…

Then suddenly I spotted a familiar figure.

"Dimitri! Dimitri!" I tried to shout, but my voice was weak, and what little sound did emerge from my mouth was quickly swallowed by the screams emitting from the injured. I struggled forward, desperate for him to hear me, but he was engaged with a vicious Strigoi who seemed to be winning, as Dimitri had no stake on him. Whether he had lost it fighting before or not, I could see that he had fought other Strigoi.

His clothes were covered in blood and dirt, and his jeans were ripped in several places. He also had a long cut across his right arm, but that didn't seem to bother him, as he was fighting the woman in front of him relentlessly.

Suddenly she threw him to the ground, and although I saw him pushing at her, I also heard the crack as she broke one of his ribs. I tried to move forward, I knew that I wouldn't be able to do much, but maybe I could distract her at least, when I tripped over something. It was a body.

I gasped as I fell, and the female Strigoi looked up, giving Dimitri enough time to grab a stake lying next to him and kill her with it. Good. At least I had been some help.

But then Dimitri started to run towards a huddle of Moroi, and I realised that while the Strigoi may have heard me, he hadn't.

I pushed myself up as fast as possible, but now my movements were jerky and slow. A direct result, no doubt, of the fact that the stake was embedded further into my body than it had been before, due to my fall. I got up though, and using the last burst of strength I had, I ran toward Dimitri.

"Dimitri, please…!"

He stopped, and for a second I thought he was going to turn and help me, but then he said,

"Rose….this is not the time. Just go."

"No Dimitri…you don't understand." My voice was so faint now, I wasn't sure if he could hear. My vision started to cloud, and I felt consciousness leave me. But not before I heard him say, in a voice so filled with emotion that there was no doubt he meant it,

"Rose…..I will never love you."


	6. Playing God

**Ok, I just want to say please stay with me on this, and read the next few chapters, all will be explained! **

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**Dimitri's POV **

I spun round, just in time to see Rose hit the ground. The words died in my mouth as I saw the silver stake sticking out of her chest. The world spun out of focus for a moment. I felt sick, this couldn't be happening. Not to Rose. Not my Roza. I had never felt pain like this, never. I couldn't, wouldn't believe it. She couldn't be dead. Not Roza! I wouldn't let her die. Even if it meant getting Lissa to bring her back, I would do it. I'd do whatever it took to get her safe again. I dropped to my knees beside her and picked her up. She felt so cold, a bolt of panic seared through me. It was like she was already dead. And despite what I had just told her, I still loved her. Hell, I loved her more than anything else on this earth. I would do anything for her, and although it nearly killed me to lie to her about my feelings, I had to do it.

For her sake.

I was not only an ex Strigoi, but I was an outcast. What kind of life could I give her? She would be better off with Ivashkov. I may dislike him intensely (ok, hate is a better word for it), but he could give her the kind of life I wished I could. He may have been a womanizer, but it was obvious that he was now completely and utterly in love with Rose. He was rich enough that she could have all of the things she deserved, she could live near Lissa on the Royal Court and still guard her. She would be accepted into the highest rank of Moroi in the world. She would be praised for her skills, and could marry and have children. Something that I could never give her.

All I could give her was love, and that just wasn't enough.

So I ran to Lissa's house, praying to God the whole way there. _God, if your there….I know that after all I have done, I do not deserve anything, but please. Please save Rose. She is the most incredible person on earth, the most selfless, infuriating, beautiful, resourceful, strong woman I have ever met. And I can't lose her. So many people are alive because of her, please. Please save her. _

I knocked on her door so hard that it smashed, caving inwards. I ran through, until I found Lissa standing in the middle of the lounge next to Christian and Mia. Their shocked expressions were nothing compared to Lissa's.

"Dimitri! What are…." Her words tailed off as she saw Rose, lying lifeless in my arms.

"Rose!" She ran up to me, sobbing as she did so. She put her hands over her face as she saw the stake, and although she didn't make a sound, we could all see her slight shoulders shaking as she sat down. A few seconds later, when she spoke, we could all hear the thinly veiled pain in her voice. It was obvious that it took all she had to speak.

"Put her on the couch." I looked down, and realised that I was still holding Rose. I hadn't realised as she really didn't weigh much. I started to put her down, and then hesitated: we needed to get out of here as fast as possible, because if Lissa healed her now, and then Rose got killed again, Lissa would be too exhausted to save her again. And I couldn't lose her.

"Lissa, we need to leave. Now." I spun around, ready to defend Rose- I mean Lissa, with my last breath. I was prepared for any number of Strigoi, gripping my stake in one hand, Rose in the other.

I wasn't prepared for Adrian.


	7. The Great Escape

**Author Note:** I'm really sorry this hasn't been updated in so long, it's just that I kinda had writers block, and so that made it pretty difficult to write a chapter that wasn't complete crap. I also had to adjust to writing in Dimitri's POV, which was a bitch too. I actually have a really bad cold right now, but I felt so bad about neglecting this that I thought I owed it to you guys.

**Dimitri's POV**

He looked bad. Not at all his usual carefree self, which led me to believe he'd run into some Strigoi on the way here. He held a silver stake loosely in one hand, (which irked me) and in the other, a set of keys. I frowned. Those looked alot like guardian car keys. Which he shouldn't have. But, then again, if he was helping us to escape from Court, perhaps it was a good idea. This annoyed me even more. I actually liked Adrian, but what I didn't like was how involved he'd gotten with Rose. Deep down I knew he was the better choice for her and that _killed_ me. Rose...I loved her so much and yet it was better for her to think I didn't anymore. It wasn't easier, and I knew it hurt her just as much as it hurt me, (so much in fact, I had wanted to turn back to her and wrap my arms around her, never letting her go again) but it was _the right thing to do._ But of course, none of this mattered if Rose was _dead._ I felt the agony and the pure terror inside me come to surface at that thought. _No, _I told myself, _she isn't dead. I can still feel her heartbeat. Just keep her alive until we reach somewhere safe, and then Lissa can heal her. _

I prayed to God she would be ok.

Adrian looked shocked at the sight of Rose hanging limply in my arms, but didn't say anything. Instead he quickly explained to us as he led us out the back, exactly how we could escape.  
'There are two cars in the garage that Eddie has programmed with the address for the safe house. Mikhail, Eddie and Jill are all waiting for us. We can take the cars to the house, and then stay there until..." He trailed off. Until what? We kill all the Strigoi? They get bored? He looked down, obviously trying to compose himself. I felt a pang of pity for him: I really did like him and respect him, and it must have been hard for him to put everything aside and help us. He suddenly looked up again and I saw the passion and determination that Rose sometimes got reflecting out of his eyes. "Getting out won't be easy, but I'm sure Christian can create a diversion?" Christian nodded. "Good," He exclaimed feverently. With that I switched my hold on Rose so she was over my shoulder. This way I could fight better and still keep hold of her. Christian and Adrian went in front and Lissa and Mia in the middle. I followed them, keeping my stake out. I felt...numb. That was the only way I could describe it. I couldn't focus on anything else but our escape or I knew I wouldn't be able to hold it together. 

Running across what used to be the Royal courtyard, I could see just how badly we had been hit. Strigoi were everywhere and so were all of the countless bodies of fallen Moroi and dhampirs. Blood splashed what was left of building and statues and the landscape was covered in gore and dust. It looked like a bomb had exploded, but it was just the Strigoi and I knew better than anyone how strong they could be. I repressed a shudder at that, thinking about my time as a Strigoi always made me feel guilty and sad. I looked around once more. We hadn't been noticed. The dark night had given us enough cover that we hadn't stood out despite our large number, and we were almost inside the garage. I felt relived but didn't let my guard down until the doors shut behind us and I saw Mikhail Tanner, Eddie and Jill. Wasn't exactly sure why Mikhail was helping us, but I was grateful. I didn't know him that well, but I knew that he was a good person, and the reason he had been stuck doing office work was because he made the same promise that Rose had to me: hunting down our lovers.

Again I was reminded of Rose. I had to stop thinking about her, because every time I did, I lost focus. And losing focus in the middle of what could only be described as a war was a very, very bad idea. One that would probably get us all killed. So instead of looking at how pale and vulnerable Rose looked, I laid her down in the back seat of one of the huge SUV's and walked around to where Mikhail, Eddie and Jill were standing. Eddie was covered in blood, but I didn't think it was his own. Mikhail was also covered, but I had a feeling it was partly from the huge gash on his arm. Jill looked scared and dirty, but fine apart from that. All three were holding stakes, and there expressions ranged from fear to determination.

"Dimitri, I know we don't exactly get along but I really need you to trust me that this is the _only way out. _Don't get me wrong, I don't want to become best friends, but letting you die isn't exactly going to win Rose's heart is it? So I need you to help me here. We have to get out, and the only way to do that is if we work together. Because honestly? We are pretty much the main targets for any Strigoi."  
He finished heavily, as though it had cost him alot to say that. I imagined it had, and I was surprised. He really wasn't what he pretended to be. I nodded back at him, and then asked  
"So what do we need to do?"  
He sighed in relief before telling everyone what the plan was.

**Author Note:** Ok, so not my best chapter, but I'm not very well, and this was kinda speed written because I have alot to do today. So please review, and check out my complete VA story, Fires Wash Away Fears. Also, it would really mean alot to me (and make me update quicker...) if you voted on my poll, which can be found at the top of my profile. Ok, thanks!


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